Welcome to the first annual Brouwer & Janachowski Holiday Christmas Quiz. This is your chance to win big. The prize is a bottle of the second cheapest French champagne and a $100 contribution to the charity of your choice. And glory. In the event of a draw, we will, er..., think of something. Judges’ decisions are final (I’ve always wanted to say that).

2. What asset was sold this year for an annualized return of 4.4% over 350 years? It lost 95% of its value in the first 100 years.

A: Leonardo da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi", which sold for $450m. However, it's not universally agreed that it's an original. Miracle of compounding.

3. Who’s the “last man standing” on the cake here?

A: Keith Richards. It's the back cover of "Let it Bleed" released in December 1969. The Rolling Stones have a remarkable survival rate. Of the original five, only Brian Jones has died and that was back in 1969.

4. Who is XXXX in this timeless dialogue?

Loki: Enough! You are, all of you are beneath me! I am a god, you dull creature, and I will not be bullied by...

[XXXX flattens Loki with repeated smashes into the floor]

XXXX: Puny god

A: Incredible Hulk. Or Hulk if you know him well.

5. Which company is this much-hyped IPO? We chatted about it for 10 seconds.

A: SNAP or SnapChat. It continues to plummet.

6. What is the best performing asset class so far in 2017?

a. Emerging Markets

b. S&P 500

c. Russell 2000

d. 10-Year Treasuries

A: a) Emerging Markets. The IEMG emerging markets ETF was up 36%.

7. The proposed Senate tax cuts are much influenced by this tax theory. Who drew it on the back of a napkin?

A: Arthur Laffer. Some unkind people suggest that's where it should have remained.

8. One of these is not a Berkshire Hathaway company. Which one?

a. GEICO

b. Kraft Heinz

c. See’s Candy

d. Duracell

e. WD-40

A: e) WD-40. It is its own public company with ticker WDFC.

9. S&P calculates the Dow Jones Industrial index and the (much better) S&P 500. How many indices does S&P calculate every day?

a. 30-50

b. 50-150

c. 150-1,000

d. 1,000 – 50,000

e. Over 100,000

A: e) It's more like 500,000. The number of indexes (and ETFs to track them) has exploded in recent years.

10. Who is the largest fund manager in the world?

a. Vanguard

b. Fidelity

c. BlackRock

d. Saudi Arabian government

A: c) BlackRock

11. He left us Little Martha dreaming of Hot ‘Lanta by the whipping post. Who would have been 71 on November 20th this year, if not for a motorcycle accident?

A: Duane Allman. Aged 24. Imagine. Brother Gregg Allman died in 2017.

Tiebreaker:

12. How many stocks are in the S&P 500?

A: Around 502 as companies exit and enter the S&P500. Any number between 500 and 510 was accepted.

Please note that this discussion of our investments and investment strategy (including our research and investment process) represents our investments and investment strategy at the date of this commentary, and is subject to change without notice. We cannot assure that the type of investments discussed in this commentary will outperform any other investment strategy in the future, nor can we guarantee that such investments will present the best or an attractive risk-adjusted investment in the future. This is for general informational purposes only; references to an individual security should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell that security. The securities mentioned in this commentary are only several of the successful as well as unsuccessful investments by us, and do not represent all of the securities we have purchased, sold or recommended. Although we deem reliable the sources of the statistical and other information referred to in this commentary, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any statements or numerical data. Past performance is no indication of future results.